Commentary: Political insiders simply don't understand the tea party movement

With each new election and new polling data, Democrat and Republican insiders are becoming increasingly confounded as their anointed candidates are defeated in primaries or trailing in polls to tea party-endorsed underdogs. The political establishment is reeling from results and predictions in Florida, New Jersey, Virginia, Massachusetts, Alaska, Delaware, New York, California, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Kentucky, Nevada, Utah, Wisconsin and elsewhere.

Millions of decentralized tea partiers and grassroots 912ers, with nameless-faceless leadership, no hierarchy and miniscule funds are changing America's political landscape.

Who are we? We are the first three words of the U.S. Constitution. For 18 months "we the people" have been gathering across America saying "we've had enough, and we're not going to take it anymore."

We've repeatedly chanted, "Can you hear us now?" only to see our voices ignored, mocked, rejected, or declared racist and radical. After spawning a dozen surprising upsets of political party anointees, we're still scorned as an angry fringe group of "stupid lemmings" and "astro-turfers." Emboldened by these mischaracterizations, we smile, knowing they simply don't get it.

Who are they? They are the elites who believe they know better than us. They include the mainstream media and progressives in public office, academe, and Hollywood who condemn individualism as selfish and capitalism as evil, while ignoring their own corruption and disdain for the Constitution.

These principles have united us. We, the once silent majority, are raising our voices, spreading the truth and making a difference. We're educating our friends, neighbors, co–workers and family members, and encouraging them to vote on Nov. 2.

Concerned about reckless spending and the destruction of America's wealth in a flawed attempt to create a more perfect society, we're working to restore our nation to prosperity with a new breed of politicians. We're uniting as millions of decent but previously disengaged average Americans, proudly supporting the principles that have made America the most creative, most productive, most prosperous and most generous nation in history.

We are an unprecedented coalition of conservatives, moderates, centrists, libertarians, independents, and even social liberals who espouse fiscal discipline. We are of all ages, races, creeds, educational and economic backgrounds. Finding common ground on today's critical issues, we're committed to reverse America's dangerous slides toward socialism and restore the America envisioned by our Founding Fathers.

If that makes us "nut cases" in the eyes of the progressive elite, so be it.

We may be registered Democrat or Republican or Independent, but we make our own choices at the polls. So in reality we're all independents. We're not a third political party, but will support candidates who endorse the principles which have united us.

We'll elect less-than-perfect candidates who know that new private sector investments, jobs and profits are the only solutions to our current nightmare. We'll vote for those who will promote that God–given right to pursue one's dreams (even at the risk of failure) without oppressive tax rates and with minimal government involvement. We'll support those who will fix broken entitlement programs, secure America against external threats and preserve America's leadership of the free world.

We'll choose candidates who understand the strengths of free markets and the undeniable weaknesses of collectivism, supporting even flawed newcomers who will allow us to make our own choices rather than concentrating power in Washington, where bureaucrats dictate our future.

We'll reject political hacks who overpay themselves while demonizing profits and dictating how others should be compensated. Well replace them with politicians who will make life easier for Americans willing to take risks, start new businesses and create wealth. We'll elect those who will enforce the rule of law, but who will otherwise "get out of the way" of job-creating capitalists. This means cutting capital gains taxes, the whopping 38 percent tax on business profits, hidden energy taxes, stifling regulations and government intervention regarding unions. This means ending ridiculous ideas like Cap and Tax, government health care and benefits for illegal immigrants.

What will be the result on Nov. 2? A political tsunami! New common sense leadership in D.C., in Florida and across America, followed by concrete steps to enable new private sector job creation, return lost jobs to U.S. soil, and once again unleash sustainable economic growth and prosperity throughout our exceptional land.

Jack Tymann retired as the president of Westinghouse International and is currently Chairman of First Florida Biofuels, LLC. Jack is a regular guest commentator for the Daily News and a frequent guest speaker throughout Southwest Florida. E-mail Jack at: commongoals2009@aol.com